Chris Grayling's benefit reforms are damaging

Further evidence that costly employment minister Chris Grayling is about as helpful as Pauline from Little Britain towards vulnerable people on benefits.

The effects of time limiting Employment and Support Allowance:

Sue Marsh has examined the assessment the Department of Work and Pensions carried out regarding time limiting Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

I will quote her summary below:

-It overwhelmingly affects the poorest most. The % impact falls from the highest in the 1st decile of earnings to the lowest in the 10th.

-It estimates that 60% will simply switch to income based ESA and not be affected. This is absolutely ridiculous, pie-in the sky rubbish. I have absolutely no idea how they can make this claim.

- The report concludes that over the term of the parliament 90% of those placed into the Work Related Activity Group (WRAG) will be affected.

-ALL groups will lose income on average through this measure.

-It is based on an assumption that 50% of claims will be appealed!!! How are they able to go forward with a system this inaccurate?

-The report itself claims that 700,000 will be affected by the Time Limit - a figure previously hotly debated, ranging from 400,000 to 1 million. It is expected to cut benefits for those not fully fit for work by 1.2 billion per year.

- The report acknowledges, just as I've been warning, that this is a disincentive to work and may push couples into divorce or into giving up on work altogether. However, they admit that they have no idea how significant this will be.

Possibly the most astonishing part is the claim that the Social Impacts did not need to be investigated, neither under the categories of Health and Well-being, Human Rights or the Justice System. (It does go on to say that an equalities assessment was carried out, which I will do my best to unearth)

As far as I can tell, the research is deeply flawed, based on inaccurate assumptions, incomplete and surely, illegal. If you discount the assumption that 60% will simply move to income based ESA, which I believe is just not true, it is a damning look into what passes for parliamentary research in our so called democracy.

Grayling's Work Programme could be trouble for voluntary sector organisations:

Remember the Big Society? It gave a lot of weight to voluntary sector organisations, but it looks like the government's new welfare to work scheme could counteract that.

Senior economist Neil Lee told Publicservice.co.uk: "The Work Programme is based on a national payment structure and does not take into account local and regional variations in labour demand.

"Economic growth is faltering and parts of the country – still dealing with the fallout from the recession – are facing significant public sector job losses.

"As the Work Programme is based on payment by results, contractors carry the initial risk. There is therefore the danger that private contractors will focus on investing in places where they are more likely to get people into work to secure a return on investment.

"The financial risk may also be passed down to small, local voluntary sector organisations which could be knocked out of the market as a result."

Does Chris Grayling has a vested interest in me not getting better.

The more releases I read from his department demonising people on benefits, the more worried I feel, and the harder it is for me to focus on getting better.

There's a bit in the Times today quoting Grayling saying that about a million people having claimed incapacity or lone-parents benefit for over a decade.

Perhaps that's because they have a serious long-term health condition or have raised a child for a decade by themselves.

Chris Grayling won't know how difficult these two situations are.

He's concerned for the welfare of bed and breakfast owners faced with gay couples wanting to stay there, but not of some of the most vulnerable people in our society.